About Cypress College

Cypress College, founded in 1966, provides a quality higher education to more than 16,000 students of diverse backgrounds each semester. The college serves the Orange County cities of Anaheim, Buena Park, Cypress, Garden Grove, La Palma, Los Alamitos and Stanton. Cypress College is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Transfer credits taken at Cypress College are accepted at the University of California, the California State Universities, and other accredited four-year institutions.

The college maintains a full range of student support programs which include individual counseling, tutoring, student activities and athletics. Faculty, administrators, and staff at Cypress College are here to assist the students in attaining their academic, technical, or job-related goals.

Cypress College is in sunny Southern California, in the shadow of major tourist attractions such as Disney's theme parks and Downtown Disney, Knott's Berry Farm, and The Block entertainment complex. The campus is 12 miles from the beach and provides quick access to Long Beach and Los Angeles. The 110-acre Cypress College campus features a lake, park-like study areas throughout the campus and beautiful weather year-round.

Academic Programs

Cypress College is committed to promoting student success and contributing to intercultural understanding, in a student-centered learning environment. Offering 57 university-transfer majors, 72 career-certificate programs, and associate degrees in 48 areas of study, Cypress College has traditional semesters beginning in January and August. A full list of programs and majors is available upon request.

English as a Second Language (ESL) Programs

Students must have a TOEFL score of 500 (written), 173 (computerized), 61 (Internet-based), or higher to obtain an I-20 to attend Cypress College. Once at Cypress College, students may enroll in English or English-as-a-Second-Language courses.

Cypress College has cooperative letters of agreement with a number of intensive English language programs including the American Language Institute (ALI) at the California State University, Long Beach, ELS Language Centers (the University of La Verne and Santa Monica centers are the closest locations) and FLS International (Citrus College and MiraCosta College locations). A student who is accepted to one of these language schools will be conditionally admitted to Cypress College at the same time. Once the student completes a certain course level of ESL at the language school, the student may then transfer to Cypress College and the TOEFL is waived.

Transfer Opportunities

A Transfer Program typically includes course work in an academic (major) area, general education requirements, and elective courses that transfer to a four-year baccalaureate institution. These programs are designed to parallel the courses offered for freshmen and sophomores at four-year colleges and universities.

Each college or university has its own admission standards and curriculum requirements. Students should decide as soon as possible on the transfer school in order to identify the courses that must be completed and the grades that must be achieved prior to transfer.

International Student Services

The Office of International Students Program and its staff members assist international students with application and admission processes, assessment testing, orientation, academic counseling, and course registration. It also provides support services to promote university transfers and student success. Cypress College has more than 180 international students from 30 different countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Germany, Japan, Korea, Nigeria, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, Tanzania, and many more countries.

Admission

The applicant is required to have the equivalent of an American high school diploma with above-average grades in all principal subjects. The American high school diploma represents 12 years of study at the elementary and secondary school level. Applicants for admission must submit original transcripts of their secondary school education to the attention of International Students Program Office. All international students must demonstrate and satisfy the English Proficiency requirement  by fulfilling one of the following assessments: TOEFL (www.toefl.org) -- minimum of 61 (iBT) or 500 (PBT), IELTS (www.ielts.org) -- minimum score of Band 5, or iTEP ( www.itepexam.com) -- minimum score of Level 3.5.